What percentage would we have to tax the rich to balance the budget?

20% That's a BIG RATE CUT and IS the correct answer.

First, to "tax the rich," we'd have to create a separate tax-bracket for "the rich" and literally 100% of Democrats refuse to let them be separated from the rates paid by the "poor Wisconsin teachers."

Anyway, the budget problem is SPENDING, not income. We're taking in WAY more than we used to. Further, we have thousands of years of human history that demonstrates there really is a "revenue-optimum" tax rate*. In other words, above 20%, you actually get LESS revenue. Of our present 6 tax brackets (if you count 0% as a bracket) the top four are already taxed ABOVE this known optimum. That's WHY the Kennedy, Reagan and Bush tax RATE cuts each led to dramatically MORE tax money flowing into the Treasury.

Of course, there are some people who claim "this time" moving rates toward the optimum would yield a result opposite to that seen in every other case anywhere in all of known time. We call them, "Democrats."

*It fluctuates SLIGHTLY with circumstances but is always around 20%

you want a serious answer, here it is. our debt crises was brought about by the banks and the politicians that they control. we have taken on the debt of all of the banks, which last I could find was $1,500T from them bundling our mortgages. it is NOT possible to pay off this debt. we are and have been under economic attack to bring this country down. raising the tax on the rich would do nothing but put us further into the rabbits hole we find ourselves in. the budget is not our biggest problem. our biggest problem is Obama and the NWO he works for. fix that problem and the rest will take care of itself.

NOBODY is suggesting we can have balanced budget in 2012 simply by increasing the highest tax bracket.

NOBODY.

Most Democrats are saying we can REDUCE THE DEFICIT by doing THAT and cutting spending.

Most Republicans are saying (and its ridiculous) that we can balance the 2012 budget by spending cuts alone WHILE WE REDUCE REVENUE via tax cuts.

If we let the Bush tax cuts expire, the deficit will be gone in 5 years

Close to about 99.8%.this bring the fat cats to the "common level"

you raise my taxes

YOU'RE FIRED..!!